* “Dare to have more democracy.”–Former West German Chancellor Willy Brandt.
* “Don’t look back. Something might be gaining on you.”–Hall of Fame pitcher Satchel Paige.
* “Pathway to a Palestinian state” is the only way for Israel to achieve “genuine security.”–Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Alas, Bibi Netanyahu doesn’t agree.
* “The U.K. will not falter. We will stand with Ukraine, in their darkest hours and in the better times to come.”–British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in unveiling a military-funding package worth $3.2 billion.
* “The U.S. could be sleepwalking into dictatorship.”–Liz Cheney.
* “A president has to have immunity.”–Donald Trump.
* “Whenever the far-right gains political traction in America, it’s usually at least partly due to an unglamorous, relatively inexpensive tactic: running for school board.”–Liza Featherstone, Jacobin.
* “Shutdown threats and months of obstruction by extreme MAGA Republicans in the House have been a hallmark of a year of chaos in the GOP-led House.”–U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla.
* “Students should be focused on learning the truth about our country instead of being radicalized by woke ideologies in our college classrooms.”–Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz.
* “You don’t just want great physician scientists and nurses and techs and allied health professionals, you want to be in the state-of-the-art facilities with state-of-the-art technology.”–Tampa General Hospital CEO John Couris. TGH has announced plans for a $500-million, 13-story, 565,000-square-foot addition to provide a state-of-the-art environment for neuroscience and transplant services.
* “I own it.”–Hillsborough Schools Superintendent Van Ayres, in reference to disappointing county school grades, including 23 D schools and 4 F schools—more than any other state district.
* “The resurgence of downtown has been good for us, and we’ve been an important part of that resurgence.”–Straz Center CEO Gregory Holland.
* “Donald Trump said he could shoot someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue and get away with it. Ron DeSantis, trying to out-Trump Trump, shot democracy in the middle of our courthouse—and he’s gotten away with it.”–Former Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren, who was suspended and replaced by the governor.